


Melted

by CrimsonShield75



Category: Mass Effect Trilogy
Genre: Canada, F/M, Feels, Fluff, Fluff and Smut, Hot Tub, Hot Tub Sex, Love, Love Confessions, Mass Effect 1, Post-Mass Effect 1, Smut, Vacation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-06
Updated: 2020-01-06
Packaged: 2021-02-27 05:41:02
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,597
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22121986
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CrimsonShield75/pseuds/CrimsonShield75
Summary: Post-ME 1, Kaidan and Shepard engage in a little R&R. Smut ensues. :)Part of the 2019 Mass Effect FanFiction Writers Secret Santa Exchange!
Relationships: Kaidan Alenko/Female Shepard
Comments: 4
Kudos: 28
Collections: MEFFW Secret Santa Exchange 2019





	Melted

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Iarinthel](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Iarinthel/gifts).



> Hope you enjoy! 
> 
> Side note: my first Shenko smut! Eep!

Commander Annaliese Shepard looked up from the datapad her marine detail commander, Kaidan Alenko, had just handed her, sure confusion was written on her features. 

“What is this?” she asked. 

“What does it look like?” he responded, that devastating small smile that made her heart melt playing on his lips. “You saved the galaxy Shepard. You saved the Council, stopped Saren and Sovereign, and prevented an invasion. Don’t you think you deserve some r&r?” 

“I mean…sure. But this reservation is for two. Is this supposed to be for you and me?” 

Kaidan dropped his eyes and rubbed the back of his neck as uncertainty bloomed in his chest. She swore she saw his ears redden as embarrassment took hold. But when he looked up to meet her eyes again, there was a look of determination in them.

“I meant what I said when we were on mission, Shepard. I don’t do things halfway. I want to follow through with this. I want to figure us out.” 

“I get that...but this is an invitation. To Earth.” 

“Yeah.” 

“To _Canada_. Don’t your parents live there? Are you...are you asking me to meet your parents?” she asked, unable to keep the incredulity from her voice. 

Now Kaidan really was embarrassed. His eyes went wide as realization dawned on him. “What? Oh my god, no! No, of course not. No. I mean - yes. _Yes_ , my parents live in Canada, _no_ I’m not inviting you to meet them. They live in Vancouver. This place is in Quebec. Opposite sides of the country.” 

Annaliese narrowed her eyes at his response. “So are you saying you don’t _want_ me to meet your parents? What, am I not good enough for their son or something?” 

“No!” Kaidan practically shouted the word, causing those who were walking past on the Presidium to shoot them a few furtive glances. He looked around, then took a deep breath, lowering his voice. “That couldn’t be further from the truth. You’re Commander Shepard. Of course they’d love you. You’re smart, strong, capable, not to mention a hell of a looker. You saved the fucking galaxy. Shepard, I couldn’t do any better. I just thought that maybe you wanted to - you know - figure _us_ out first before I started to complicate things by introducing outside actors. Call me selfish, but I just want to have you to myself for awhile.” 

She smiled and stepped closer, cupping his cheek with her hand. She wasn’t sure if he did it knowingly or not, but he leaned in to her touch. It was so sweet that her resolve broke, and she decided to let him off the hook. She kissed him softly on the lips, then pulled back to meet his eyes. 

“I know. I was just giving you a hard time. I love the idea, Kaidan.” She glanced down at the datapad again, looking more closely at the details of what he set up. “And I think I have just the thing to bring with me.” She winked as she kissed him quickly once more, before turning to head back to the Council, leaving Kaidan open-mouthed and speechless in the middle of the Citadel.

* * *

The transport brought them into port in Quebec province, swooping in low over the Hudson Bay before settling down right outside the city center. The view as the shuttle came in was breathtakingly beautiful. It was the middle of winter and snow and ice covered the land. Annaliese had been to ice planets before, of course, but she somehow forgot that humanity’s home planet could get just as cold. She was thankful for her thermals as she exited into the port itself. She could see her breath in front of her. 

“You grew up in this?” she asked Kaidan, taking her travel bag from his hand. 

“Nah, not like this. Vancouver doesn’t get nearly as cold - nor get as much snow.” Kaidan looked around at the snowdrifts piled around them, some as tall as him, some taller. He turned to her. “But you know that - you’ve been there.” 

Annaliese shrugged. “Yeah, but I just thought I was there in summer or something. Seasons kinda confuse me.” 

Kaidan laughed. “I get that. It was always fun explaining Earth to the colony or spacer kids. ‘What do you mean some countries are desert and some have snow? And some have _both_?’” He caught himself as he looked to her. “Oh, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t --” 

Annaliese kissed him to prevent the apology from continuing. “Don’t. It’s part of who I am. I can’t - and won’t - hide from it by not talking about it. But I _can_ be mad at you for making fun of us colony kids. Not our fault our planets have normal axes.” She shoved his shoulder playfully before taking in the more than three metres of snow around them. 

“This is incredible,” she breathed, unable to prevent the smile from forming on her face. 

Kaidan shared her smile. “If you think _this_ is incredible, just wait until we get to the hotel.” 

“Yeah,” Annaliese said, following Kaidan out of port and to a waiting skycar. “What do they mean, ‘ice hotel’? It’s not _actually_ made out of ice, is it?” 

“Did you not read any of the information included in the reservation?” he asked, a bemused expression on his face.

She shrugged again, climbing in the backseat of the car after shutting the trunk. “Not really. I got the essentials - cold, hotel, hot tub, you. Besides, sometimes I like it when someone else is in charge for a change.” 

Kaidan’s eyes darkened at her words, and a small thrill ran through her at his expression.

“What?” she asked, smiling a bit. 

Kaidan just shook his head and settled against the seat. “You’re something else, you know that, Shepard?” he asked, bemused expression now mixing with a lustful one. 

Annaliese reached across the empty space between them and tentatively interlaced her gloved fingers with his. He turned to look at her, and she nearly jumped into his lap right there, in the back of the skycar. But she didn’t, reminding herself that they had time for that later. 

“Kaidan?” she asked. The uncertainty in her voice made him lift his head off the back of the seat. She almost cried when she saw the small concerned crease between his eyebrows. 

“What is it?” he asked. 

“I have something to ask you...but it isn’t easy,” she said, gazing at their intertwined hands. 

“You can tell me anything, Shepard. You know I’d follow you to hell and back. Hell, I already did.” 

She smiled at that, and forced herself to meet his eyes. “We’re really doing this, aren’t we?” she asked, instead, biting her lip as nerves fluttered to life in her stomach. 

“We are,” Kaidan replied, shifting to sit up a bit taller so he could look at her more clearly. “Are you having second thoughts? We cleared this with the Alliance --” 

“I’m not worried about regs,” she interrupted him. “If I was, I wouldn’t have let this --” she cut herself off, unsure of how to describe what they were, “ _this_ begin. I’m the commanding officer - it was my job to stop anything before it got too far. But, Kaidan, I didn’t want to. I want to _be_ with you. In every sense of the word.” 

Kaidan had begun rubbing small circles over her gloved hand with his thumb, and that small gesture made her stomach flip in anticipation of what she was going to ask him.

“I, ah...thought we got as close as two people could that night before Ilos,” he replied softly, humor dancing in his eyes even though his expression remained serious. 

Annaliese smiled, despite her nerves. “Physically, yes,” she said. “But not emotionally.” She paused, and Kaidan let the silence fall, giving her the space she clearly needed to work out what she wanted to say. She couldn’t have been more thankful for him at that moment. 

“I was thinking...maybe when we’re off duty like this - when it’s just the two of us…” she bit her lip again but resolved to keep going. She was Commander Shepard, for God’s sake. “I was hoping you could call me by my first name. Annaliese,” she told him, in case he didn’t know. “Shepard or Commander still when on the Normandy or in front of any other Alliance. But for this trip, can it just be Annaliese and Kaidan?” 

He was quiet for a moment. She thought she had scared him away, but then he spoke her name softly, as if trying it out and seeing how it felt. 

“ _Annaliese_ ,” he said again, rolling it around in his mouth. “That’s such a beautiful name. But - are you sure? I don’t think I’ve heard anyone call you that. Not even Anderson.” 

She smiled again, though somewhat sadly. “It’s something I protected after Mindoir. Don’t ask me why, but I felt like if someone else called me that, it would mean the tragedy was real. It was stupid, but it was a coping mechanism. Then I got so used to just being called Shepard that it kinda stuck. Then it was a respect thing...but I don’t want any of that with you, Kaidan. I want you to know _me_. Not 'Commander Shepard.'” She turned away from him. “Actually forget about it, it’s stupid --” 

“I love it,” Kaidan interrupted, tugging on their linked hands hard enough to make her turn back to him. “I’m sorry I questioned it. Thank you for telling me.” He brought their hands up to his mouth and kissed them. It made her groan as her stomach clenched in desire. 

“Kaidan…” she said, turning desperate eyes on him. 

“Soon, Annaliese. Soon,” he murmured to her. She grinned widely when she heard her name on his lips and turned to look out the window at the passing countryside. If she didn’t, she wouldn’t be able to guarantee her ability to keep her clothes on.

* * *

As it turned out, the ice hotel was, in fact, made of ice. It was an engineering marvel, and that was coming from someone who lived on the most advanced frigate in the entire Alliance military. Everything was made of ice and snow - the floors, the walls, the _lights_. There was actually working electricity wired through chandeliers made of ice. The check-in desk was made of ice and snow, and every piece of art and decoration was also sculpted out of the cold material. 

Kaidan was right - it was incredible. 

She let him take care of the check-in process. It’s not like she was incapable of doing so, but she wasn’t lying when she told Kaidan it was nice for someone else to be in charge every now and then. Being commander had plenty of privileges, to be sure, but it also had its downfalls - mainly that everyone looked to her to make decisions. It could get exhausting. Besides, she was supposed to be on vacation and she fully intended to take advantage of that fact. 

She signaled to Kaidan that she was going to go exploring, then she started wandering down the hall past the lobby. 

The hotel consisted of a main building that housed the lobby, the bar, and the nightclub. Though she wasn’t a big believer in hitting the dancefloor, she had to appreciate that the entire club was built out of ice and snow. The DJ booth, the side areas for people to hang out, the bar, even the dance floor itself were all constructed out of ice. The floor even appeared to be wired with lights that changed color to the beat of the song that was being played. 

Shaking her head at the sheer ingenious of the whole thing, she continued out of the main building and into the hotel courtyard. The outer buildings housed the restaurants - she had to check out how an ice _restaurant_ worked - the hotel rooms, and the hot tubs and saunas. She smiled to herself as she noticed the swim spas, knowing what she had in her bag. She hoped it caused the reaction she intended. 

She paused her wandering as her eyes landed on a building that didn’t seem to have an immediately apparent use. She headed over to investigate further. To her shock, she discovered that the building was a small chapel that was _also_ made of ice. The pews, the altar, the roof and floor and walls - all ice and snow. It was strange to see. 

“Interesting, isn’t it?” Kaidan asked, walking up behind her. 

“I just never thought to make such things out of snow. And a _chapel_? Why is that here?” she asked, still not taking her eyes off the building. 

“Apparently they do weddings here. It’s a huge part of their business. Ice hotel weddings and honeymoons,” Kaidan said, looking up the information on his omnitool. 

“What a strange and fun idea,” Annaliese murmured to herself. “A wedding in an ice chapel. Think of how _white_ everything would be. I’d blend into the snow.” She giggled at the thought. 

“You’d wanna get married here?” Kaidan asked, raising one eyebrow and turning to look at her. 

Annaliese shrugged. “I dunno. I mean, if I ever do get married, I don’t really know where I’d have it. I don’t really have any place that’s important to me. Mindoir’s fucking out, and other than that...I mean I bounced around from ship to ship. The Normandy’s home, but who the fuck would want to get married there? But this place…” she trailed off, then turned around slowly in a circle. “This place is magical. It feels so surreal, like the rest of the galaxy doesn’t exist out there. It’s quiet, and sparkling, and like a bubble surrounds it that keeps anything bad from happening here. It’s perfect. So it’d be the perfect place to marry the person I love.” 

She stopped speaking then, a small blush creeping up the sides of her neck. Thankfully, she was so bundled up against the cold that Kaidan shouldn’t have been able to see it. Still, she lowered her eyes to the ground instead of meeting his gaze. 

“Sorry,” she said. “That was a bit much.” 

Kaidan came over to her and wrapped her in a tight embrace, assuaging her fears. 

“It wasn’t too much at all.” He kissed her forehead. “For what it’s worth, I think getting married here would be perfect.” 

“You do?” she asked, brow furrowing in question. 

“Yeah. You’re right. There’s something...magical about this place.” He leaned down to kiss her softly. “Speaking of magical, I think we have an ice room waiting for us, if you’re done exploring for now?” 

“I am,” Annaliese said, smiling. She took Kaidan’s hand and he led her to their accommodations for the weekend. 

* * *

If she thought she had seen magical before, she wasn’t prepared for what the room looked like. It was a veritable suite, with a sitting room, a bedroom, and a loft area with a ladder made of ice to get to the top and a small slide to get down. There were a few electric stoves spread throughout to provide heat, but the pièce de resistance was the large king-sized bed _made of ice_ that dominated the center of the space. Curious, Annaliese walked over to the bed, trying to imagine how she was supposed to sleep on a _block of ice_. 

“There’s a thin mattress on top of the ice,” Kaidan supplied, seemingly able to read her mind. “And we’re supposed to sleep between the furs, not under all of them. That should provide warmth and cushion as well.” 

Annaliese sidled up to Kaidan and wrapped her arms around his waist. “And, ya know, we’ll have each other.” She squeezed him gently. 

Kaidan leaned down to kiss her. He captured her mouth in his, lips soft yet insistent in their movement. She leaned into him more, opening up to allow him to taste her fully. She shuddered a little - whether from the cold or the groan he let out at his newly granted access, she couldn’t tell. She pressed herself against him more firmly, and he dropped the datapad she didn’t know he had in his hand onto the bed behind her, allowing him to wrap his arms around her waist. He pulled her toward him even more, so she was flush against him - or as flush as she could be with their winter clothes on. 

Their tongues intertwined, playing with each other, darting between one mouth and the other. He nipped the bottom of her lip with his teeth, and she nearly came apart then. She needed _more_ , needed his hands on her body. She whimpered a little, and Kaidan chuckled, a deep sound that reverberated through her chest. He slid his still-gloved hands underneath her jacket and the hem of her shirt, skimming the skin at the small of her back. She wished he would have taken his gloves off. 

He broke off the kiss - way too soon for her liking - and pressed his forehead to hers, a bit breathless. 

“Kaidan…” she whined slightly, but he shook his head and kissed the tip of her nose. 

“We have reservations in thirty. And you always hit the showers when coming off a shuttle,” he said. “I don’t want to keep you from that.” He pulled away from her, albeit reluctantly. 

“I know…” she said, sighing. She smiled slightly as his thoughtfulness. “You’re right. And I am excited to see how a restaurant made of ice works.” 

“Very carefully,” he quipped, before slapping her slightly on the ass, pushing her in the direction of what she assumed was the shower.

A sudden terrible thought hit her: _“If this room even has a shower.”_

“But I’ve heard the food’s great,” Kaidan continued, this time oblivious to her thoughts. 

“Steak and beer?” she asked, heading towards where she stashed her travel bag. 

“Among other things,” he chuckled. “We _are_ in the French part of Canada. Their palates tend to be more refined.” 

Annaliese scrunched her nose. “You don’t think I’ll have to eat escargot, will I?” 

Kaidan shot her an amused expression, lifting one eyebrow. “Are you telling me the great Commander Shepard isn’t an adventurous eater?” 

She shrugged, grabbing her change of clothes and toiletries before heading toward the bathroom. She cringed as she pushed back the fur flap separating the rooms, but - thankfully - the room had real plumbing fixtures amongst the snow walls and floor. 

“I’m more of a comfort-food person. I’ll try anything once, don’t get me wrong, but there’s just something about eating _snails_ that seems...gross. Besides - there weren’t any snails on Mindoir. And I don’t think Alliance rations include escargot either.” 

Kaidan laughed again. “Fair enough. Maybe we should bring that up to Hackett.” 

“Ha, ha,” Annaliese deadpanned. “Just what the Alliance needs - gourmet rations.” 

“Hey, it could work!” he protested. 

“What, the protein bars don’t cut it for you?” 

“I’m just saying they could be better,” he said. 

“So you want _escargot_ protein bars? That’s kinda a leap Kaidan,” she teased. “I didn’t take you for such a gourmand.” 

“Not what I mean,” he chuckled. “All I’m saying is that even escargot might be better than the cardboard we’re stuck with. Would it be so hard to get some chocolate-flavored bars for once? Or even ones with something that actually resembled the fruit it claimed to have?” He sat down on the mattress and leaned back, picking up the datapad he had discarded earlier. He was so sexily casual. If she didn’t get into the shower now, they were never going to make it to their dinner. 

“I hear ya,” she said, heading into the adjoining room. “But I’m not sure the Alliance’ll go for it.” 

“Hey what good is your Spectre status if it can’t get us some halfway decent bars?” he joked. “Surely you can pull some strings?’ 

“Do you really need me to answer that question?” she asked from behind the furs. She reached out one hand and threw her panties at Kaidan. Though she couldn’t see him, she could hear his approval in his voice as he answered. 

“Heh, yeah. Guess not. Thanks, Annaliese.” 

“For what?” she asked, knowing fully well what he was referring to. 

“I was gonna try to get some reading done, but now I’m distracted.” 

“By…” she trailed off, sticking her head out of the fur flap to glance at him with a smirk.

“I wonder…” he said, winking. 

She grinned before climbing into the shower. She had a good feeling - this weekend was gonna be fun. 

* * *

Dinner at a restaurant made of ice was far beyond anything Annaliese could have expected - and she’d been through a lot. But it was so different than anything she’d experienced before. It was _real_ ice and snow underneath her boots and gloves. She was being served food that was cooked in outdoor fire pits, the same way they did it a hundred years ago. It was historical and strange. It was perfect. 

Turns out, she didn’t have to eat escargot. Though it was on the menu. She almost ordered it to see what Kaidan would do - almost. But she was never one to waste food, and if she didn’t like it...well. Better to try it off someone else’s plate than to order the whole dish for herself. She ended up with a delectable crock of vegetable bisque, a venison dish served with elderberry jam and pureed potatoes, and the lightest chocolate mousse she’d ever tasted. 

She never thought she missed out on much having the life she did, but for the first time, looking over at Kaidan as they walked hand-in-hand back to their room, she thought she might not mind retiring to civilian life. Eventually. 

They returned, full of good food and even better spiced wine. She was ready to snuggle up into bed, though she seemed to recall there was some sort of...procedure they had to go through first. 

“So tell me how sleeping works?” she asked, pulling off her gloves and warming her hands in front of one of the stoves. 

“Well, typically, one lies down on a flat surface - though it doesn’t always have to be - and closes their eyes until their body shuts down for the night, to enter into a sort of recharging state --” he stopped short as one of her gloves hit his face. 

“Not what I meant,” she said, rolling her eyes but unable to stop the smile from reaching her lips. 

“I know,” he smirked. 

God, he could be such an ass. An adorable ass, but still an ass. 

“So apparently, that’s _actually_ what the hot tub is for,” he continued. 

“We’re supposed to sleep in the hot tub? But what about this _cool_ bed?” It was her turn to be the ass - and make a terrible pun while at it. 

“Wow, Anna, that the best you got?” 

“...Anna?” she asked, taken aback by his use of a nickname for her. Nobody'd ever called her that before. 

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Kaidan began, all thoughts of their verbal teasing apparently leaving his head. “I didn’t mean to overstep.” 

“No,” she said, moving closer to him and taking her ungloved hand in his gloved one. “I love it. My parents insisted I use my full name. ‘Anybody can be Anna, only special people are Annaliese,’ they said. So I got used to correcting all my friends whenever they tried to give me a nickname. But,” she said, stepping even closer and removing Kaidan’s glove from his hand, slowly. “They’re not here anymore. And I kinda like that I have a name that will be used by only you.” 

She raised herself up on her tiptoes and kissed him softly. 

“Annaliese,” he said, trying to protest. But she just shook her head and kissed him again. 

“If it feels right to you - use Anna. I like it.” 

He paused, searching her eyes for a moment. But she was sure all he saw was the truth and sincerity of her convictions in them. Letting out a sharp exhale - as if he’d been holding his breath - he bent down to kiss her again. She knew that was his way of acquiescing. 

“Now,” she said, after a lengthy kiss that did very little to satisfy her desire. “What is that about sleeping?” 

He chuckled darkly. “Well, before I was interrupted by _someone’s_ smartass comment, I was _saying_ , we’re supposed to use the hot tubs to raise our internal body temperatures. Then we wrap ourselves with the thermal sheets in the closet. We’re supposed to wear those to bed. That - coupled with the furs and the thin mattress - are meant to keep us warm throughout the night.” 

“Ah. So we _have_ to use the hot tub, huh?” she asked.

“If you wanna stay warm,” he shrugged. 

She nodded. It was a good a time as any to show Kaidan what she brought with her. 

“Sounds good to me,” she said. “Lemme go get changed. I’ll meet you in there?” 

He nodded and kissed her quickly. “Hurry back,” he told her in that husky voice of his.

Oh, she definitely would. 

* * *

It didn’t take her too long to put on the special swimsuit she brought for Kaidan. It _did_ make her uncharacteristically nervous to be wearing it, however. She wasn’t sure how he was going to respond. Only now she thought he might be offended by what she was wearing. She hesitated for a split second, then resolved that if he was offended, he wasn’t the man she thought he was. 

Because it was freezing - literally - she wore slip-on fuzzy shoes and the thermal sheet outside to the patio where the hot tub was located. Not only did that serve to keep her warm, she also was able to reveal her outfit in a grand gesture - which could go either way. 

She made it to the edge of the tub and the steam was beginning to warm her up. Kaidan was in the water already. He had a decanter of mulled wine sitting on a tray near the edge and had poured them two cups. 

_“Well, if he hates it, we can always just get drunk,”_ she thought. 

“Welcome back,” he murmured to her, eyeing her thermal sheet. “You gonna get in? I’m sure it’s warmer in here than it is out there, even with the sheet.” 

Steeling her resolve - against the cold and Kaidan’s potential judgement - she removed the sheet, slipped out of her shoes, and stepped quickly into the warm water. 

“Mmm,” she moaned, as the warmth seeped into her bones. There was something intimate about wearing so few clothes in the ice and snow. It was kinda thrilling. 

She slid down into the water and rested her head against the side of the tub for a moment, closing her eyes and breathing in the steam around her. 

“This is nice,” she murmured. 

When Kaidan remained quiet, she opened her eyes and lifted her head to look at him. 

“Kaidan?” she asked, squinting to see him through the steam. 

He cleared his throat. “Yeah?” 

“Are you okay? You’re being kinda quiet.” 

He cleared his throat once again, more forcefully this time. 

“Yeah,” he said again, and this time his voice was less rough. 

She narrowed her eyes and began moving through the water towards him. She reached him in a few steps and placed her hand on his slick, well-muscled arm. 

“Hey, what’s wrong?” she asked. 

“Anna what are you wearing?” he asked, staring at her breasts. Or - more accurately, she realized - the suit that was covering her breasts. 

“Oh, I’m sorry. Do you not like it?” she moved to back away from him. 

“Anna. _Not like it?_ Are you kidding me? Do you know how fucking sexy you look right now? To see you - Annaliese.” He sighed, rubbing a handful of hot water over his face, as if to clear his thoughts. 

“This is the _last_ thing I expected to see you in. Are you...are you wearing it for _me_?” 

“Of course! Why else would I be wearing a Canadian flag bikini?” she asked, chuckling. 

He grabbed her and pulled her in towards him, crushing her soft chest against his hard one and kissed her, hard. It was a searing movement that left her breathless - she wasn’t prepared for the assault on her mouth - but she wasn’t about to turn it down, either. She’d been wanting to do that since they landed on Earth. 

His tongue entered her mouth, demanding attention and access. She easily complied, opening for him and twining her own with his. He stood up to get better leverage and deepened the kiss even further, grasping her behind her head and around the small of her back, so he could hold her exactly where he wanted. 

He was in charge and it was sexy as hell. 

Finally, after a few more minutes of attention, he broke off with a sigh, resting his forehead against hers.  
“Anna…” he said. 

She giggled. “If I knew _this_ would have been your reaction, I would have brought it out sooner.” 

She settled in next to him as he sat down again, grabbing one of the cups of wine from the tub’s edge to hand to him, while taking the other for herself. 

They clinked the glasses together before taking small sips of the spiced and warm liquid. 

“Mmm, that’s good,” Annaliese said, licking her lips to get a better taste. 

Kaidan murmured his agreement, but didn’t say much else. Instead, he brought his hand up to the cup of her bikini and started tracing the flag that was there. As that was also right over her nipple, she started getting very turned on. 

But the hot tub was nice, and she wanted to enjoy it. Plus she thought there was a minimum time required they needed to spend in the hot water to get their body temperatures high enough so the thermals would be functioning at peak efficiency. 

_“Of course, there’s always_ another _way to raise our body temperatures,”_ she thought with a smirk. 

She decided to try to have a conversation with Kaidan before they were reduced to the groans and non-verbal noises she knew were in their future. 

“I really only wore this as sort of a joke - I mean, we were going to Canada, you’re _from_ Canada...I dunno, it kinda just fit. But I guess you really like it, huh?” 

Kaidan let out a huff of air that could be construed as a soft chuckle. 

“You could say that,” he said. 

She laughed softly. “Why? It’s just a bathing suit.” 

He shrugged, finally meeting her eyes. They were slightly glazed over. She knew that if she were to glance at his swim shorts through the water, there’d be a large tent in them. The thought made her tingle with anticipation. 

“It’s just not something I ever expected. Like, yeah, I know you listened to me when I talked. But…” he trailed off, turning away from her. 

Taken aback, Annaliese put her glass down and floated over to be in front of him. She rested her knees on the outsides of his own legs and reached up to gently turn his face back to her. 

“Did you not think I cared? Did you think this was just some sort of quick fuck on shore leave for me?” she asked, trying hard to keep her voice even. 

He shrugged, avoiding eye contact. “I’m not sure what this is, Anna. I _wanted_ to believe you lo - liked me enough to make something of this, but with the regs and the Normandy, and the reapers...I’m just not sure.” 

“Kaidan, I pulled Spectre rank so we could be together and still serve on the same ship. I took a lot of heat from Hackett. Like, _a lot_. You told me from the beginning that you were in this for the long haul - so am I. There’s something special here, Kaidan. Otherwise I wouldn’t have fought so damn hard for us.” 

He shifted a little, sitting up a bit straighter and met her eyes. “You took heat from Hackett? What happened? Why didn’t you tell me?” 

Now it was Annaliese’s turn to shrug. “It’s not that big a deal. Let’s just say this shore leave is a bit longer than originally intended.” 

“What?” 

“Like I said, it’s no big deal. Hackett doesn’t like us being together, but he knows there’s nothing he can do about it. He knows us, trusts us to be professional when it counts. And he knows we wouldn’t risk our positions if this wasn’t real.” She cupped his cheeks with both hands, making sure he was maintaining eye contact with her. “And it _is_ real. At least for me it is. He just needs a few days to smooth it over with the rest of the brass, get them on board with whole Spectre/Alliance Navy-but-not-really-but-yeah-I-am situation. Hell, _I_ could have used a few days to get used to it.” She laughed and went to move off of him, but he wrapped his hands around her hips, holding her in place. 

He searched her eyes, a serious expression on his face. Finally, he sighed, and brought his own hands up to her cup her cheeks. 

“Shepard,” he sighed, closing his eyes and resting his forehead against hers once more. She stiffened a bit at the use of her last name from him again, wondering what had caused the regression. Had she screwed up by not telling him about Hackett earlier? 

“Commander Annaliese Shepard,” he said quietly, still pressing their foreheads together. It made her relax just a bit to hear him use her first name again. “I love you.” 

“What?” she asked, pulling away to look at him in the face, sure he must be joking. 

“I love you. I fucking _love_ you. I’ve known it since the moment you pulled me away from that beacon on Eden Prime and didn’t give me the dressing down I knew I deserved. You’re so fucking special, do you know that? No you don’t, and that’s what makes me love you even more.” She opened her mouth to say something, but he plowed ahead. “Aside from your service record - which any academy recruit could quote - _you_ are special. _Annaliese_. The woman. The consideration you have, the thoughtfulness you show, the power you could wield but don’t - Anna. Annaliese...I love you. I know it’s a bit early to say but --” 

She didn’t let him finish as she pounced on him, pressing her chest to his as he leaned back against the side of the tub at the force of her movement. She assaulted his mouth in a searing kiss to get him to stop talking, then broke off to say four words of her own: “I love you, too.” 

Now it was his turn to pull back and search her face. “Anna, just because I said it --” 

“Kaidan,” she said, kissing him to get him to shut up again. “I’m not. You think I’m the type of person who’d do that?” 

“No,” he said, an uncertain smile now on his face. 

“I love you, too. The way you grounded me during the whole Saren thing - the way you had my back, the way you understood everything that I needed, the way you still seem to be able to read my mind sometimes...we just _fit_ Kaidan. I haven’t had the easiest life, and I’m not sure about most things, but I am sure about _you_. You’re one of the best damn people I’ve ever met - and that’s saying something. I know Anderson,” she joked, trying to lighten the mood. She met his eyes and her stomach clenched at the desire she saw blazing in them. 

“Anna,” he murmured, burying his face in the crook of her neck. “Anna.” He began kissing up the side of her neck, nuzzling her skin as he went along, breathing in her scent. He said her name over and over again, like a chant, in between kisses that he placed on the sensitive skin beneath her ear, on her temple, and over the arc of her forehead. He made a full circle of her face before finally reaching her mouth. He didn’t go for her lips all at once though, which was surprising to her. Instead, he nipped at her bottom lip with some intensity, pulling his bite just enough to not draw blood. He did it a few times, pulling her lip between his own and sucking on it slightly. It was a new move that she hadn’t gotten from him before, and it made her hungry for more. 

She shifted, straddling his lap more fully as she moved up towards him. With her knees now on either side of his upper thighs, she could feel his thick erection through their swimsuits. A shudder moved through her once again, only this time she knew it was because of what he was doing to her, and not the cold weather. She shifted her hips back and forth, subtly rubbing herself against him. 

He kissed her more fully now, groaning into her mouth as he felt her movements. He stiffened further under her ministrations and she couldn’t stop herself from grinning as she felt his cock twitch as their kiss deepened. 

“You like something?” he murmured against her mouth. 

She just shrugged, not wanting to give in to his ego just yet. In response to her silence, he moved away from her mouth, kissing down the opposite side of her neck than before. This time, he paused at the sensitive spot where her shoulder joined her neck, sucking and nibbling at the skin there. Annaliese let her head fall back, exposing the area more fully to him, encouraging him. He spent a few more minutes worshipping her neck, then leaned back slightly to take her in. 

He traced wet fingers down her chest, gazing in awe at her bikini top once more. He let out a small huff of laughter before running his hands over her suit-covered breasts. 

“A fucking Canadian flag bikini. You’re something else, you know that?” he murmured. 

She smirked, grinding herself down on him a bit harder and smiling fully when she elicited a gasp from him. 

“I know,” she said, capturing his mouth with hers as his fingers slid underneath the interior edges of her bikini cups. He ghosted the pads of his fore- and middle fingers over her nipples and sent a small electric shock through her as he did so. Whether he did it on purpose or it was just their biotics reacting with each other, she didn’t know. Nor did she care, because it felt _amazing_. It was her turn to groan now as his fingers swirled lightly over her sensitive peaks, caught underneath her suit. She grabbed his face in both of her hands and pulled him closer to her, kissing behind his ear and sucking his earlobe. He grasped her breasts in his hands as she dragged her teeth over the outer shell of his ear, followed by her tongue. 

In response, he pinched her nipples between his thumb and forefinger, pulling them a far as her suit would allow them to go. 

“You know, you _could_ take it off,” she murmured in his ear, before switching sides to pay attention to his other ear. 

“Uh-uh,” he said, planting kisses down her breastbone. “This suit’s never coming off.” 

“What?” she laughed, leaning back to give him better access to her chest. 

“You heard me,” he answered, pushing aside the fabric of her left bikini cup and covering her newly exposed skin with his warm breath. The combination of the steam, cold air, and his breath was sending extremely pleasurable mixed signals through her body. She shuddered when he flicked out his tongue and lapped at her nipple. 

“You can’t be serious,” she said, ending on a moan as his teeth grazed the underside of her breast. 

He kissed up her curves, ending on her nipple that had hardened due to the cold air and pulling it firmly into his mouth, sucking intently. He nipped at the sensitive peak, laving his tongue over the spots where he had just bitten. While his mouth was giving attention to her left breast, he slowly pushed back the fabric covering her right one and started palming the heavy flesh in his hand. 

“Does it look like I’m joking?” he asked, raising himself slightly to look her in the face before giving equal attention to her right side. She moaned again, pushing herself more firmly against the hard rod that was situated in just the wrong spot between her legs. She needed it to be closer --

Suddenly Kaidan lifted her out of the water, laying her against the side of the tub on top of the towels they had put out for use later. 

“What --” she began, before starting to shiver in the cold air. But before she could say anything more, he grabbed one of the thermal sheets and placed it over her body, keeping her nice and warm. She raised herself on her elbows, wondering what he had in store. 

“Kaidan --” he silenced her with a kiss, then passed over her cup of mulled wine. 

“Drink this, it’ll keep you warm,” he said. 

“What about you?” she asked, craning her head to see where he’d gone. He winked slightly and had a wicked gleam in his eye before he slid back down in the water out of her view. 

She dropped her head and didn’t feel anything for a moment. Then all of a sudden she felt a small electric current run up her body, starting at her legs. It buzzed and flitted around her, causing her own biotics to flare to life. She knew her biotics reacted with Kaidan’s in a different way than they did to others’, knew that being intimate sometimes made it harder for her to maintain her grip on her power, but she had never been... _teased_ like that before. Kaidan’s biotics were probing her own, melding and pushing and awakening them in a way she had never felt. 

She gasped as their newly joined power made its way further up her legs. She squirmed in anticipation, wondering what it would feel like to hit her _right there_ , to surge up into her -- 

But it skipped over her center, skimming around to the outside of her hips and the majority of it came around to settle on her ass. A small tendril of it continued to wrap around her torso and upper arms, swirling around her breasts, keeping her warm. She had never felt anything like that before. It was incredible. 

“Kaidan?” she managed, breathless, lifting her head once more. 

“Are you alright?” he asked, seemingly struggling just as much as she was to form words. She lifted herself up onto her elbows, the biotic energy cocooning her and giving her an extra boost of adrenaline. He was staring at her - a small blue field surrounding him as well. 

She nodded, swallowing away the sudden dryness that filled her mouth.

 _“What the fuck?”_ she thought. 

“It wasn’t like this before,” she said, watching his hands intently as he brought them near the skin of her thighs. Hovering over her body, not really touching her, Kaidan slowly moved his hands toward the inside of her legs. She knew he didn’t have his hands on her, but she _felt_ them, felt the pressure as he pushed her knees wider, allowing him further access to the apex of her thighs. 

He continued his slow progression upwards, keeping just a slight distance off of her skin. 

“Kaidan?” she prompted, trying to get him to answer what had changed. But instead he just flicked his eyes up to meet hers again. 

“How does it feel?” he whispered, his voice seemingly extra husky as he was concentrating. 

“It feels amazing…” she said, dropping her head back to rest on her shoulders. “But... _how_?” 

“Later,” Kaidan murmured, bringing his attention back to her center. He apparently knew she was about to protest, because he continued speaking. “I promise.” 

Then he used the biotic energy to pull her bikini bottoms to the side and dragged one tiny tendril of energy up her slick folds. 

She would have climaxed if he hit her clit, but he seemed to know that. The energy surrounding her breasts and pulsing over her nipples slowed in its intensity just a bit. He took a sip of his own wine, then knelt down on the seat of the hot tub, bringing his arms underneath her thighs and lifting her hips so his face was flush with her center. He inhaled her scent and she couldn’t help it - she wanted _more_. 

“Kaidan…” she whined. He dragged another tendril of energy through her sopping folds, this time stopping at her entrance to tease her. It wasn’t enough. 

“Kaidan,” she demanded. 

He chuckled. “Not so fast, Annaliese. All our times before this have been urgent, filled with adrenaline because we were either facing death or a court martial. But now, we don’t have any of that over our heads. And I _fully_ intend to take my time with you…” Then he bent down and ran the flat side of his tongue through her folds, following the same path as the tendril of energy. He lapped up the liquid that was gushing from her, then formed a hard point and inserted his tongue as far into her as it would go, still careful to avoid her bundle of nerves. 

She clenched around the intrusion, happy something, _anything_ was inside her. The energy swirling around her breasts picked up again as he tongue-fucked her and it was all she could do to keep present and aware of the sensations that were assaulting her body. She let out a loud groan as he curled his tongue and stretched her entrance. She wanted to close her legs around his head, but the biotic power was keeping her spread for him. 

Her clit pulsed with need as his actions ramped up her arousal. She moved under him, trying to signal with her body that she needed him to touch her there. 

He must have gotten the hint, for he redirected some of the biotic energy that was gripping her ass and touched her bundle of nerves. It was only the lightest of brushes, but the spark of energy was enough to send her over the edge. She clamped her hand over her mouth to keep her screams stifled - sound carried easily in cold weather and she didn’t really want reports of her and Kaidan doing it getting back to Hackett when she promised him she’d be discreet. Her spasms shook her whole body and she felt sure she was covering Kaidan’s face with her juices. He kept fucking her with his tongue as she rode through the orgasm and used the biotic energy to go with her as she came down. 

_Fuck_ , that was amazing. And he hadn’t even fucked her yet. 

When she had stopped clenching around it, Kaidan removed his tongue from her center, although he did it slowly, making sure to catch all the liquid that was dripping from her. He licked through her folds again, then sucked gently on her clit, almost causing her to cum again. 

He trailed his hands lightly over her inner thighs, past her hip bones, and up her muscled stomach. The touch was so soft and her muscles shivered as he touched them. He traced up the sides of her heavy breasts before settling on his elbows on either side of her head, boxing her in and making their biotic energy swirl together more intensely. She shuddered with pleasure. 

“Fuck, Kaidan,” she whispered, meeting his eyes and cupping his cheek with her hand. She rubbed her thumb over his bottom lip and he took the digit into his mouth, sucking on it gently. “Fuck,” she said again, squirming. 

He released her thumb and chuckled darkly. “Ready to go again already? I thought you may be too sensitive --” 

“ _Fuck_ no,” she said, grasping his face with both hands and pulling him down for an intense kiss. He gently ran his hand through her hair, brushing the strands away from her face and neck as he slowed down the kiss, making it last. It was so sensual - not like the times before. He really did seem like he wanted to savor her. It made her heart swell with love, but her center clench in annoyance. 

He did seem a lot more relaxed, though, and she had to admit she was curious how much control he had, so she put a damper on her own impatience and settled into the kiss herself. His tongue played with hers slowly, dipping in and out of her mouth in a slow dance that did nothing but increase her desire for him. He was kissing her like he had all the time in the world and it was glorious. 

The biotic energy washed over her in a wave, warming her and creating a blue flash behind her closed eyes. She was so distracted she didn’t even feel Kaidan shift position, but she did feel him slide a finger inside of her. She moaned into his mouth and spread her legs a little wider to give him better access. He smiled against her but still kept kissing her slowly as he inserted a second finger, which slipped easily inside due to her arousal. She groaned at the intrusion but was thankful he was making sure she was good and ready. That meant he should be fucking her soon. She hoped. 

He rotated his fingers to stretch her entrance for a bit, then curled them upward, brushing over the sensitive area at the front of her inner walls. To her dismay, he didn’t do it hard enough to cause any intense feeling for her though. She was about to break the kiss and beg for a harder touch when he began fluttering his fingers against the spongy location. He then spread his fingers slightly and rubbed against her inner walls. She gasped, having never felt that sensation before. He sped up his fingers but maintained the slow kiss against her mouth. 

When he focused his biotic energy to his fingers though, it proved to be too much. She buried her face in his neck as he brought her tumbling over the edge. His forearm held her to the ground and she wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him flush against her as she fell. He stayed with her as she came down again, peppering light kisses along her temple and forehead as he withdrew his fingers. She almost cried with the need she had to have him inside her, to be connected with him and _whole_. The energy field around them intensified and Annaliese removed the thermal sheet, sure she wouldn’t need it. 

He gazed down at her with such love and adoration in his eyes, she couldn’t take it. She grinned at him instead, biting her lip as she ran her hand over his stiff erection that was still trapped in his swim shorts. 

Now it was his turn to groan. He closed his eyes as he ran his hands over her hips, settling on her ass cheeks. 

“You know, I’ve cum twice now, and you haven’t even once,” she said, tracing the stiff outline of his cock with one finger. She focused her biotic energy on her digit and sent a little spark of energy down the underside of his shaft. It caused his cock to jump and he moaned, eyes blown wide with desire. 

_“Hehe, two can play at that,”_ she thought. 

“I wanted to make sure you were taken care of,” he said, swallowing hard. 

“Trust me, I am. But I’d be better taken care of if I had your cock in me.” The aforementioned body part twitched under her hand again and she gave it a little squeeze. 

“Yeah?” he asked, reaching up to the top of her ass to grasp the edge of her swimsuit bottoms. 

“Yeah,” she breathed, lifting herself slightly so he could more easily slide them down. He folded the wet garment and laid it next to her, then grasped her legs and spread her wide. 

“God, you’re so fucking beautiful,” he murmured, staring at her. She smiled and let him drink her in for a few moments before she sat up to tug down his own shorts, freeing his erection. It bobbed right in front of her mouth and she licked her lips, preparing to take him in her mouth. But Kaidan stayed her with a hand on her chin. 

“If you do that, I’m not gonna last,” he warned. “Save that for round two?” 

“Good to me,” she said, laying back down and spreading herself even more. He tilted her hips up to get the right angle, then guided himself toward her. He dragged his cockhead through her folds to get nice and slick, then lined himself up. 

Meeting her eyes, he pushed himself inside her. 

She was so wet she took him easily, groaning as she felt his tip stretch her. Kaidan wasn’t a huge man, but he was muscular for his frame and had an above-average dick size (if her experience told her anything). She didn’t think she’d ever get used to his girth - no matter how many times they fucked. Not that she was complaining, of course. It felt fucking amazing. 

“Oh, _yes_ , Kaidan,” she breathed, closing her eyes as he continued to push slowly into her. He was still controlling himself - she could tell - but she appreciated the effort. She also figured the slow pace was as much for his sake as it was for hers. 

After an agonizingly slow entrance, he finally hilted against her, his pelvis flush with hers. She looked up at him and he leaned down, running his thumb over her cheekbone as he kissed her. 

He began to move then, his hips slowly retreating until only his cockhead remained in her, then pushing back in. He repeated this over and over again, slightly picking up the pace as he did so. She savored the feeling of him inside her, filling her and stretching her, the veins of his thick shaft rubbing against the most sensitive part of her inner walls. She also noticed that the biotic energy was melding together more fully, coalescing into a stronger force each time they came together. It was sending tingling sensations throughout her body, heightening the experience as Kaidan continued to move within her.

“Kaidan…” she moaned. 

“I know, Anna, I feel it, too.” He picked up the pace, moving in her more quickly than he had before. “I dunno how long I’m gonna last. It feels --” 

He broke off as she began moving her hips up to meet his own, deepening their connection. 

“ _Fuck_ ,” he groaned.

“Just let it go,” she whispered, grasping on to his shoulders and pulling him flush against her. His hips began to move more erratically as she pressed her bikini-clad breasts against his flushed skin. 

He caught her mouth in a desperate kiss, tongues and lips mashing together as he continued moving within her and the biotic energy continued to build around them. He reached down to where they were joined and started rubbing her clit. 

“Cum with me, Anna,” he murmured between kisses. 

“I don’t know if I can,” she said, groaning as his fingers sent little shockwaves of biotic energy into her bundle of nerves. 

“You can,” he said, moving that much faster. He brought some of the biotic field into him and seemed to channel it through his cock, causing small electric sparks to run across her walls as he fucked her. 

“What the fuck?” she gasped, eyes opening wide. 

Kaidan searched her face. “Is that okay?”

“That’s more than okay. The fuck is that?” 

Instead of answering, he sped up his movements just a little bit more, trying to push through and hold on for her. 

“Anna…” he warned. 

“It’s okay,” she moaned, digging her blunt nails into his shoulder muscles and tossing her head back. “I don’t know what the fuck that is, but _fuck_...I’m close.” 

“Good,” he breathed. He kissed her hard and spilled himself inside of her, pumping his cock over and over again as his cum filled her. The sensation of him releasing - as well as the weird biotic energy - was just enough to take her over the edge again, and she came with Kaidan, the two of them clutching to each other as their orgasms subsided. 

They stayed in each other’s arms for awhile as their breathing returned to normal and their heartbeats slowed down. As they began to come down, the biotic energy surrounding them pulsed along with their hearts, coming back toward them and settling over them like a blanket. Eventually, it got reabsorbed into their skin, causing a tingling sensation and intense warmth to spread throughout her veins. 

Kaidan nuzzled her neck then moved to kiss her. Resting his forehead against hers, he opened his eyes, sincerity and adoration shining in them. 

“Good?” he murmured. 

She kissed him again, relishing the feeling of them being as close as two humans could be. 

“Perfect,” she said, smiling. 


End file.
